1. Technical Field
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for system integration in an instant-on computer environment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is common to run more than one operating system (OS) and related applications on a computer system at the same time, using virtualization software. Virtualization provides a container environment, in which another operating system may run, sometimes without any knowledge that it is running inside the container, rather than directly on physical hardware. An operating system and related applications which run inside this contained environment are often referred to as a virtual machine (VM). Virtualization is generally comprised of a software component, often referred to as a hypervisor, and sometimes specialized hardware features to facilitate virtualization on the computer system.
Virtualization can be used in situations where it is desired to run a software environment, e.g. Microsoft Windows, which is not compatible with the software environment, e.g. Linux, currently running on a computer system. In this example, the Linux environment runs natively on the computer system hardware, and is often referred to as a host. The example Windows environment runs inside a VM, sometimes also referred to as a guest.
In fact, more than one VM can potentially be run using virtualization, with each VM running an arbitrary and unique software environment. Various applications are typically run in both the VM and host systems. For some commonly used or needed tasks, such as web browsing or DVD playback, applications may be provided in any combination of VMs and the host system.
Virtualization provides a potential for instant-on operation of a personal computer. One aspect of virtualization thus concerns the integration of an instant-on environment into a platform, e.g. a personal computer. It would therefore be advantageous to provide a method and apparatus that integrates an instant-on environment onto a platform.